Durin's Folk

The stalwart Longbeard Clan, descendants of venerable Durin the Deathless, is spread across a great expanse of mountainous territory, boasting great beards, booze, and builds. As the Red Mountain Dwarf clans are not yet added to the mod, their players are counted among the ranks of Durin's Folk and use the title, materials, and NPCs of the faction until such time as Red Dwarves are added to the mod. Furthermore, Durin's Folk are part of the Dwarven Lords' Councilalongside their brethren the Blue Dwarves, sending representative lords to discuss joint matters and diplomacy, where they hold 5 of the 7 seats. For this reason many on the server treat the factions as one entity when in fact they are still separate.

Contents

Government

Unlike many factions on the Official Mod Server, the dwarves of Durin's Folk do not recognize a singular king or faction leader. Instead, they choose to split the power of the faction among the leaders and lords of their many holds. This is a result of the spread out nature of the faction, and the fact that each lord has their own build to work on and would rather not step on someone else's toes, or be stepped on themselves.

The kingships and lordly titles that rank highest among Durin's Folk and are equal in stature are as follows:

Kingdom of Khazad-dûm (Moria), currently led by King Fundin II Dwalinul (SpoangityBob). The grandeur of Moria is known to almost all who walk Middle Earth, and the riches of its citizens and beauty of its halls are proof of the greatness of dwarven civilization. The capital is Azanulbizar, the east side of Khazad-dûm. Secondary cities include West Gate, Methedras, and eventually Celebdil and Fanuidhol. Many smaller holds have begun dotting strategic positions in the southern Misties as well. Since 17/11/2015, Moria owns Dunland and started construction on citadels in the north and south. In the Kingdom of Khazad-dum, there is a change in how the ranks progress. While the normal (for dwarves, anyways) titles of King and Lord are still in effect, the title of Thane has been reworked to signify not just the heir of a lord's city, but to also signify someone as owning one of the lesser "fort" builds that were founded. Thanes in the kingdom are permitted to wear silver-trimmed dwarven helmets with their usual non-trimmed armor. Khazad-dûm has its own, special laws. Page: Kingdom of Khazad-dûm.

Kingdom of the Grey Mountains, currently led by King VetusGeneral. The capital of Dain's Halls is a worthwhile destination for the hardy traveler due to its extensive and wealthy halls. Its inhabitants eagerly await the return of their ancient dragon enemies and specialize in unique brands of trade. They control many cities which include Framsburg, Khazul Mornit, Norinbad and Karak Faluk.

Kingdom of the Iron Hills, currently led by Queen LlianB. The Iron Hills are ever in search of new dwarves to aid the construction of the capital, Gund`aban, near West Peak. Bounteous mineral resources are a great draw to anyone seeking to build a life underground. Player settlement in the kingdom is fairly spread out, without any major secondary cities.

Kingdom of Erebor (Lonely Mountain), currently led by King Bofur III Stonehelm (Bofur_The_Dwarf). Erebor has survived through many different iterations on the server, with each new incarnation more glorious than the last. Erebor's grand and lofty halls make for a great destination to anyone traveling in the east. While the kingdom is mostly centered on its obvious capital of Erebor, the Ravenhill acts as a secondary location nearby, and the Lords of Dale and Esgaroth are traditionally closely allied with the King Under the Mountain, with Erebor directly controlling Esgaroth itself. Former King Thorin has also invested in the development of Dale as a capital of the Kingdom of Rhovanion which started a great alliance with Lego_Army, a former Rohirrim now King of Rhovanion.

Kingdom of the Red Mountains (Orocarni), currently led by King Alfarin II Ironhand (Wille912). Orocarni is a large and naturally rich land inhabited by those few spirited fellows willing to make the trek across Rhovanion and Rhun. Those few who make the long journey are rewarded with the many ores and the large amounts of materials. The current capital is Wille912's city of Khazad-Azgal (Treasure of the Dwarves).

Kingdom of Forochel, the newest kingdom of the Dwarves founded 12/21/15 during the Dwarfmas Council proceedings, it is currently led by King Borin II Silver-Hand Nainul (BorinOfForochel formerly known as MattDiver). Its capital is Zigilgund which is under construction currently and lies in the mountains of its northeastern region. It holds populations of Durin's Line known as Northern Longbeard Dwarves and the Lossoth, Men of the North. While it may be surrounded by the unforgiving frozen wastes of Forodwaith, those who make the journey to its borders will find many camps and settlements more welcoming than the icy wastes should they be a friend to the King and his citizens.

The Halls of Durin (Builds)

The Durin's Folk faction lays claim to many of the great builds of the server, as follows:

Khazad-dûm (Moria) is being built by SpoangityBob, and features extensive excavations near the West

The Great Hall of Khazad-dûm

Anvil, a small town located next to West Gate

Gate fast travel point in Eregion, as well as the East Gate of Azanulbizar to the west of Dimrill Dale. The main kingdom hub of apartments and facilities is located at West Gate, while massive works on a grand scale are designed and implemented at the east side. The Great Halls and Bridge of Khazad-dûm as seen in the movie are finished, leaving just the Chamber of Mazarbul to be done for recreating the cinematic experience. Current projects include apartment excavation, finishing the forges, and carving natural-looking caverns. Also maintained by the players here is the village of Anvil at West Gate, and a dwarf recruit camp at Kheled-zâram (the Mirrormere) just north of the Dimrill Dale waypoint.

Mt. Methedras was founded by connor7boss/Lord_Ragna at the eponymous fast travel point, it features a very richly furnished front facade and redstone gate. Also being worked on are lavish apartments leading to the mine and a tavern fit for royalty. Outside is a double ring of walls to keep invaders at bay and visitors in awe.

Dain's Halls was founded by aidansebastian, and welcomes visitors with a very tall and detailed front gate overlooking a small bridged chasm. Its remote location in a biome lacking fast travel points makes it a rarely seen but worthwhile destination, boasting extensive apartments and vaults, statues of rare Utumno bricks, and the largest dwarven hall on the server, the Hall of Dragons.

Nordinbad was founded by Waterfist_Cace as a vacation retreat from Khazad-dum. He later decided to build it up more and place it in the care of the Grey Dwarves where it was continued by Lord Samaranth00 prior to his leaving the faction to join the High-Elves. It features a nigh-impregnable outer wall crowned with a large patio and battlement, leading inside to a dining hall and opening up into a half-natural cavern retaining its lake and stalagmite and stalactites, with dwarven brick walkways forming a viewing platform. Below can be found more halls.

Framsburg is the door to the Grey Mountains, presently a large trading city that guards both the road to Dain's Halls. In lore, it was of old a homeland to the Eotheod before they moved to Rohan, so Rohirrim players have built mannish ruins nearby. It features several shops of speciality items for all factions and players alike.

The Glittering Caves were created by Dwarven_Warlord as part of his larger Helm's Deep build in cooperation with mewarmy, King of Rohan. The overall build is very impressive and larger-than-life, and the caves deep inside truly glisten from the walls of Gondorian stone, inset with chunks of glowstone.

Gund`aban was started by Luigi27, and continued by Queen LlianB and the other Iron Hills Dwarves as the capital of the Iron Hills. It still is under construction, but its making great progress due to the hard working Khâzad.

Erebor (Lonely Mountain) is being built by Bofur and a multitude of fellow dwarves, formerly

The Lonely Mountain's Gate

consisting of a small mountain, gate, and a large pit lined with walkways and rooms, it has since been started fresh to allow a more professional looking gate and mountain. Work has begun in earnest on the interior of the gate now that the Erebor biome is finally in the mod, huge common areas, and pillar-topping walkways span huge distances in the cavern. NPC apartments line the walls and player facilities lie below, as a massive excavation has begun for the Hall of Kings for the throne. Outside are the giant guardian statues, and on the west from gate is Ravenhill in all its glory. For more info visit Dwarves of Erebor.

Khazad-Azgal is being built by Wille912, and is currently the capital of the Red Mountains. Wille has proven himself as an excellent architect and works many intricate corridors into his designs, and Khazad-Azgal was featured on the server Facebook page's Build of the Week.

Zigilgund, the capital of the Kingdom of the Northern Longbeards, is currently under construction led by BorinOfForochel (formerly known as MattDiver). Zigilgund will have 2 main sections: Id-Gathol and Id-Ugar. Id-Gathol is the outer surface level fortress. It will hold all defensive structures, all barracks, the market, the lesser mines, and the tombs. Id-Ugar, or the Great Cavern, is to planned to hold all living spaces, halls, workshops, the Grand Forges, and the Great Workshops of Zigilgund. When complete Zigilgund will be nearly ten times larger than even the largest of the dwarven capitals and the strongest defensive point in the entirety of the dwarven lands.

Annals of the Durin's Folk (Server History)

In the distant past of the server
Durin’s Folk was a small faction unknown to many. Back then the only dwarf of renown was connor7boss (now known as Lord_Ragna). He was reckoned the leader of Durin's Folk, controlling the lands surrounding the Iron Hills. It was during this early period when the construction of the original Erebor began. connor7boss created the front gate and began attempting to construct the mountain itself (for in these early days the mountain biome for Erebor was yet to be added), rising high above the Wilderland around it. Eventually, connor7boss left the server due to the "Sack of Erebor" of which he does not speak, and the mysterious mount of Erebor was left unattended for visitors to awe at.

Shortly afterward, the player Hayoo began excavation of the halls at West Gate, in an effort to create the Mines of Moria. It was not long, however, before the sea began to call to him. Seeking to join the High Elves of Lindon, he turned over possession of West Gate to the relatively new Blue Dwarf SpoangityBob, who has reigned in the halls of Moria ever since. SpoangityBob rapidly carved out a handful of smaller halls and renovated the ones Hayoo had already dug out, in order to prepare for larger excavations later. During this time he explored much of Middle-earth searching for other dwarves and making contact with the major kingdoms, drawing many new players to the halls of Khazad-dûm. The first of was aidansebastian, who was named Thane of Moria. Shortly after Waterfist_Cace and Smiturion joined.

The dwarves of Moria divided their time between carving out new halls, exploring the world to bring in new resources, and slaying as many orcs of Gundabad as they could. In this last endeavor, they became well known, earning them the friendship of many, particularly the Rangers of the North and the High-Elves of Rivendell. As the players of Moria became known throughout Middle-earth, so too did the build, and thus the tours of Moria began on the server. While free of charge to visitors, the tours brought a lot of attention to Moria and to the faction of Durin's Folk at large. Many gifts and new recruits were received, and the apartment district of Khazad-dûm experienced a building boom as new dwarves flooded the halls. Around this time SpeedySC founded a new kingdom of Durin's Folk in the Red Mountains, and the first Dwarven Council was formed to elect the High King of All Dwarves. This golden age also saw contact with the east open up, as the Lord of Moria and the King of the Woodland Realm befriended each other, with the Wood-Elves offering assistance for any dwarves making their way through Mirkwood to Erebor and the Iron Hills. Shortly after this new friendship formed, the Lord of Dale Mathyas57 acquired the rights to the Lonely Mountain, and re-founded the Kingdom of Erebor and drawing new players with the promise of riches and building the glorious mountain.

The golden age came to a close when a series of events befell Durin's Folk, starting with Gundabad orcs breaking into Khazad-dum to butcher and loot some of its players, including the chief architects. This began the slow decline of Khazad-dum for a time. Next came a devastating explosion in the Red Mountains that obliterated the hold of SpeedySC. Reeling from this loss, he abandoned the mountains to settle in the Iron Hills, founding the first kingdom there since connor7boss. Afterwards, the bridge at West Gate was destroyed by foul orcs of Gundabad, and the trade missions to other kingdoms started being attacked and slain by bandits like corrupted_knight. Thus ended the first great age of the Durin's Folk on the server.

Recovering from the collapse of the golden age, Durin's Folk began its resurgence by sending out new settlers to colonize the dwarven lands of lore. The Iron Hills developed its outposts throughout the region, Erebor brought in a huge amount of new players becoming the most populous dwarven city by far, the player sebbeopetrini re-founded the Kingdom of the Red Mountains in the east alongside his Thane wille912_, and the former Thane of Khazad-dum, aidansebastian, took the fellow Moria dwarf Smiturion with him to found the city of Dain's Halls as the capital of the new Kingdom of the Grey Mountains. The Kingdom of Khazad-dum also grew during this period: while some of its best and brightest had left to strike out on their own, the former King Under the Mountain connor7boss returned to the server and began a colony at Mount Methedras in the southern Misty Mountains, solidifying SpoangityBob's claim as Guardian of the Southern Misties. Furthermore, the humble village of Anvil was founded near West Gate to act as a fishing and hunting ground, as well as a lumber yard. And so did all the kingdoms of Durin's Folk begin to show signs of prospering once more.

The Dwarven Lords' Council around this time began to codify its dealings and rules better, to the point they are at today. And so did the 5 seats of Durin's Folk (and thus the corresponding 5 kingdoms) become set as Khazad-dum, the Greys, Erebor, Iron Hills, and the Reds. Coming hand in hand with the update that added dwarven trimmed armor allowed this formal hierarchy to have tangible structure, and the silver-trimmed armor of a minor lord became something for new dwarves to strive for, as trimmed armor became a prideful gift to the lordly friends of the dwarves in other factions.

Over the next month, Durin's Folk had sprung back from its brief decline in earnest. Many glorious halls were dug across all the kingdoms, Methedras became renowned for being lined with golden brick, the eastern halls of Moria were excavated and the Bridge of Khazad-dûm and Great Hall completed, Dain's Halls experienced a population explosion that allowed the Grey Dwarves to quickly dig out all the remaining halls necessary for a kingdom to function and begin the massive Hall of Dragons, Erebor began terraforming the environs outside the gate while bringing in its first dwarf NPCs, the Iron Hills securely fortified both West and East Peak, and the Reds attracted a master farmer and tradesman so that wille912_ could focus on the city. A player by the name of Dwarven_Warlord founded the Glittering Caves as part of his Helm's Deep build and submitted himself to the authority of the Dwarven High Lords to determine which kingdom he would fit into. The leaders of the dwarves also became fairly active in the many conflicts that have wracked the server in this recent period. Both SpoangityBob and SpeedySC earned much fame and honor in the First Southern War, and later in the Mordor Civil War.

More recently, the Grey Dwarves of Dain's Halls have been attacked by vicious orcs of Gundabad, Mordor, and Dol Guldur. This instigated what eventually turned into the First War of the Ring (known to the dwarves as the War of Retribution) as the Dwarven Lords' Council refused to tolerate such heinous crimes. The opening of the war proved fairly disastrous for the Blue Dwarves of the Northern Misties, and the outpost at Mount Gram was lost to a combined force of Isengard and a league of assassins following a failed siege of Isengard itself. Next came the planned siege of Osgiliath, where both Khazad-dûm and Erebor dwarves were present with their finest warriors. Combined with the forces of almost all Good-aligned factions, they managed to scare off the Evil opposition threatening the city without so much as a bow drawn. A similar situation happened days later at the east gate of Moria, the flood of men elves and dwarves who had sworn to defend Azanulbizar was too much for Evil to so much as attempt assailing it.

SpoangityBob represented the dwarves at the grand coronation of Atanvarno, 5th King of Gondor, swearing an oath of friendship and presenting him with Anduril on the orders of Mevans Ilúvatar.

Presently the Durin's Folk faction is dealing with a large influx of recruits while filling up space within their underground abodes, constructing new halls, and coping with the loss of several important players to bans and disillusionment with the server.

Main goals of the Faction

- Be the top on the market

- Be rich

- Have awesome and grand halls

- Dig

Heirs of Durin (Players)

Khazad-dûm

King SpoangityBob (Fundin II Dwalinul), Guardian of the Southern Misties

Heir, Lord, Thane and Bushmaster Floonie, Lord of East Gate and Heir of Khazad-dûm

Khazad-Azgal

Thrain's Halls

Lord_Gil_Galad

Rikz5

Eylenbosch

VestusGeneral

Wolffe

Forochel

King Borin II Silver-hand Nainul (BorinofForochel)

Lord and King of Potatoes timthegrizlybear

creeperblast99

Becoming a Dwarf of Durin's Folk

Do you desire to join the ranks of the bearded kin? Do the depths of the world beckon to you, yearning to be unearthed in all its splendor? Are long beards, strong ale, and honest steel your favorite equipment on long and perilous journeys? Then Durin's Folk is the faction for you!

The kings and lords of Durin's Folk are always looking for young players eager to grow their beards to join their holds and send their faction to new heights of glory, whether at home building, in the mines, or on the battlefield, and can assure that you will be in good company.

The majority of Durin's Folk will allow a player to join if they can earn 100 alignment with the faction through slaying Gundabad orcs and quests, as well as possible small tasks such as digging out a room for the build, aiding in gathering resources, etc.

So grow out that facial hair, sharpen your axe, take a few practice swings with your pick, and bring an ale and join Durin's Folk today!